31' Albin 1998

The 31' Tournament Express was designed as a saltwater sport fishing boat by a company with over a century of North Sea and Atlantic experience. That makes for a seaworthy boat that 'I’ll go out in when no one else goes," says Tatham. "That really opens up your options when you're cruising."

The Albin's blue-water heritage is immediately apparent: a very high bow to buck big waves, a high, welded stainless-steel bow rail, nonskid surfacing and side decks wide enough to let you stand straight up holding both the side rail and the handrail on the cabin roof. A light gray color on deck helps reduce reflective glare on sunny days.

The Albin sports an impressive cockpit for a boat of this size. A fiberglass swim platform runs right across the transom and includes a door that slides and latches securely with heavy stainless-steel fittings. The door disappears completely to facilitate landing a big fish or transporting a load aboard.

An enormous covered live well and bait well combination is fitted into the transom top.  Under the sole are more wells with removable bins, two systems­ inspection hatches and excellent rod storage; open storage in the cockpit sides lets you keep rods handy or you can stow them overnight behind a hatch cover. Topside includes a seawater wash-down as well as a transom­ mounted shower, overhead and foot lighting for night use and convenient drained rope lockers port and starboard.

Great cockpit features include the large padded gunwhales and stainless toe rails so you can brace yourself while leaning out. Double cabin doors swing and latch out of the way, giving easy access to the wheelhouse - in effect transforming it to a protected extension of the cockpit.

Just inside the doors to starboard is (your choice of) a bait preparation area or beverage center, featuring fridge, sink, cutting board and storage for tackle or loose items. An adjustable swivel helm seat is located forward with a drop-down floor section that lets you steer standing or sitting.

Three substantial wipers on the windshield sections hinted at the builder's confidence that these boats might see rough waters. The wheelhouse glass is 360 degrees, with sliding sections and screens and there is a companion seat against the port cabin side that can accommodate three or four passengers.

Three steps down take you into a cabin featuring a starboard roomy head with curtained shower, Jabsco pump MSD, mirror and sink built into a vanity.

The port galley includes six drawers and a locker, stainless sink, another Isotherm refrigerator, two-burner Princess propane stove, coffee maker, toaster oven and microwave.

The layout gets more creative from there. A large dinette rather than a conventional V-berth dominates the forward section of the cabin, featuring abundant storage under the sears. It turns into a queen berth if guests are aboard. The cabin is one main room except for the head - a double berth, also open, stretches across the aft bulkhead. We found storage in or under just about everything, a nod to its incarnation as a cruising boat as much as a fishing one.

Albin offers single or twin engines and Charlie opted  for the single Cummins 450-C,  an 8.2 litre six cylinder that makes 450 hp. Acceleration is more than adequate and the boat seemed happiest when cruising at about 2,200 rpm doing about 20 mph. That's where the very deep-vee hull was up on plane and making good headway. She seemed to track with little correction at lower speeds while she leveled out further at higher speeds, hitting 25 mph on our GPS at 2,600 rpm. Even then a little tab brought the bow down further and added a little more speed.